CSU needs one for the crown

Pressure not new to Rams

By Mike Brohard Loveland Reporter-Herald sports editor

Posted:
11/23/2012 10:22:51 AM MST

Colorado State's volleyball team has celebrated seven straight wins. With an eight tonight against New Mexico, the Rams can celebrate a fourth straight Mount West title and 18 consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament.
(Steve Stoner/ Loveland Reporter-Herald )

FORT COLLINS -- Life could have been so much easier.

Colorado State's volleyball team opened Mountain West play on the road at New Mexico, and the Rams quickly stormed out to a two-set lead, only to have the Lobos win the final three sets. If CSU had won one of those final three sets, the last month could have been a lot less stressful.

Instead, Colorado State (20-7 overall, 12-3 MW) was put in the situation where its been forced to win its final seven conference matches of the season in order to win the Mountain West title for the fourth straight year and pick up the automatic NCAA tournament berth. The final of those seven comes tonight against the Lobos (20-12, 7-8) at Moby Arena (7 p.m.).

"I think if we would have won in New Mexico, our season would have been different," setter Deedra Foss said. "We would have had a better start obviously, but we didn't, so we want the revenge, we all want the win and we're all pumped to play them."

Coach Tom Hilbert expects his team to be fired up with so much on the line, especially when the package is wrapped up in the neat little bow of the emotion of senior night and the final home date of the season. But instead of wondering what if, Hilbert is almost of the mindset of thanking the Lobos for that opening loss and what it's done for his team.

As he said, it's not entirely fair to look back. But what it's meant to his team has been fabulous.

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"It is what it is, and this season end has been very interesting," he said. "I think the urgency of some of the things that have happened this year -- not just that, but a lot of things -- have made this team grow. I like the way we played Saturday (in a three-set road sweep over Boise State) as well as any time this entire year. And I think you're starting to see players who feel they can control their own destiny and do the right things, and we're getting better because of it."

After the loss to the Lobos, the Rams also dropped another five-setter on the road to Fresno State. The next night out at UNLV, Hilbert made some changes, the Rams won and have gone 11-1 in that spell.

In switching Dana Cranston's spot in the rotation, the Rams have become a better side-out team, have been better at point scoring and have stopped opponent's long point runs. Cranston was even more effective, sitting second in the MW in kills per set (3.63) and points per set (4.28).

So, for one, Hilbert is glad his team went through the stress of chasing a title instead of coasting into one, because the team wouldn't be the same.

He's certain it wouldn't be as good.

"One, a lot of years where we've returned really experienced groups, we've plateaued early and then you're just trying to fight to get them to stay there," he said. "This has not been like that. We've had to grow, we've had to make improvements throughout the course of the year. Those types of things are defining who we are right now."

Right now, the Rams are playing as well as ever. Middles Megan Plourde and Brieon Paige have thrived, sitting 1-2 in the conference in hitting percentage (.368 and .366) as Hilbert said they have figured out they can control matches.

Better yet to Plourde, the team has found a mental toughness and fortitude in making the run it had to to reach this point. The Rams are not only good right now, there are the best they've been all season.

"I think we've peaked right now," she said. "Everyone is playing their best, and I think that's helped us a lot these last few road games. That will help us a lot too.

"I think we became more mentally focused and more comfortable. We learned to kind of stay relaxed and not get hyped up in the situation. We have to play in it no matter what, so I think it's just learning how to handle it and being in that state of mind really helped us."

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